An open letter to the Board of Finance

Published 6:10 pm, Monday, March 19, 2012

First, thank you for your service to our community. As you are certainly aware, you fill a pivotal role in the management of our town's priorities, and I applaud your dedication.

Having said that, I write to express my support for the proposed Board of Education budget. I believe that the net negative impact on property values, and, ultimately, tax revenues, if our schools are perceived to be declining -- in even minor ways -- will far exceed any possible benefit from cutting this budget.

I do think that we probably have too many administrators, and some of the administrators are probably earning more than necessary to retain qualified people, but that is not a problem that can or should be attacked through the budget process. A reduced budget will cause the reduction of programs, teachers and services, but is unlikely to affect administrators in any way. The net effect will be to increase the percentage of the budget dedicated to administration versus the amount dedicated to education.